I think Clive Tyldesley summed up the sense of loss many of us will be feeling tonight when he wrote that, as a teenager, he wanted to be John Motson. As a sports-mad kid, albeit one with next to no ability, I wanted to be one of Motson's great mentors, David Coleman. In many ways I still do and I'm now 40. Generations of us will have their particularly special memories of Motty. My own go back to Euro 96, and that wonderful Paul Gascoigne goal against Scotland, and being in the pub as a student in 2002 when he told us to hold the cups and the glasses back home before David Beckham scored the critical penalty against Argentina. Many will doubtless have put him, rightly, in the same bracket as other great voices of yesteryear like Richie Benaud, Ted Lowe, Dan Maskell and Peter O'Sullevan today. But what, I think, distinguishes him from his great football contemporaries, Barry Davies and Brian Moore, is the feeling that here was not simply a commentator, but a fan with a microphone. He was one of us as a broadcaster in a way that I think only two other legends, Sid Waddell and Murray Walker, have achieved. There are many, many fine broadcasters and commentators working on British television today. Yet it's hard to imagine, for many reasons, that any of them will achieve the same sort of place in the nation's affections as either John Motson or the man whose loss his comes so soon after, Dickie Davies. We may not have known it then, but we truly grew up in an era of giants. Farewell Motty, and thanks for everything.
The fella was a gem, always made a game enjoyable to watch with his facts, his enthusiasm and at times was batshit crazy. As many have said, he was one of us, a fan, with a microphone. R.I.P Motty you absolute legend.
RIP was a good memory of football in the good old days. 'An Alan Harper the substitute has scored for Everton....he got free on the right and Harper who trained as a defender this week but is in midfield today showed a forwards instinct' 'Everton march on once more '
Look at this absolute disgrace of a "tribute": Using Motty to perpetuate the daily culture war. Using a man's death to stoke division. That's really disgusted me. Motson was the Murray Walker of football for our generation.
Emile Heskey, could it be five????? Yes it is!!!!! Living in France, I was more accustomed to Martin Tyler's voice (and what a great commentator he is as well) but the duo Motty formed with Brooking (I think) at the 2002 World Cup was at the top of what you could possibly expect in this business. It was like the game was necessarily good when those two were in the press box. I never felt they said anything particularly groundbreaking in terms of tactics but the attention to the little things educated generations & generations of football fans which probably made English fans more knowledgeable about the game as time went on. Now technology has pretty much killed the job as we focus more on criticizing journos for mistakes they say rather than praise them for telling stuff as it is. As a kid, I used to listen to the BBC as I had no access to football on television and this is where Motty in particular thrived I think. RIP.
RIP Motty. I've loved reading people's stories and memories of him. He truly was THE voice of football for so long.
Honestly thought he stated the obvious and took about 6 replays to see what could be spotted in real time, but he was undoubtedly an icon of the game. Nobody now is as iconic for me, Martin Tyler may get there some day if he stops trying so damn hard every time there's a shot on goal. Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk
Martin Tyler will never be close to being on the same level as Motty in his prime and never has been IMO. None of the current or future crop will be, because Motson was unique and worked in an age where people actually listened intently to the commentary rather than treating it as background noise. There's just too much football on now for a commentator to gain the status Motty had. I also find Tyler's desperation to come out with another 'Aguerrooooo' line pretty annoying. He used to be good but his commentary has been painfully scripted ever since - same goes for the likes of Pearce, Matterface etc. It's just not as natural anymore.
Champion, Drury, and Tyldesley I think are all very good commentators. Brackley was class as well. They all, a bit like Motty, actually sound happy to be there, and seem to enjoy the game no matter who they are commentating on. But I do think a lot of them have pre-planned sound bites in case cwrtain things happen during a game, in the hope they become the next iconic line of football commentary.
Like referees, commentators don't bother me in the slightest. The only one I dislike is Matterface, and that's mainly because of his radio work where he wouldn't provide someone listening to a game with the basics of what's needed. When watching, I can't say I'm ever attuned to the commentator that much.
I'm with you apart from Peter Drury. He is the most annoying, scripted commentator out there. No wonder the big channels binned him off. I was watching Sheffield United vs Leeds once and he started the commentary with "This is a tie that smells purely of Yorkshire puddings and gravy". I turned it off.
and still Ricky Villa. That commentary is one of the best one liners ever in sport. Never tire watching that brilliant goal.
